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Law Reforms in India: All in the name of jobs |
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Mar
26th 2018, Anamitra Roychowdhury |
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About
the Book
Labour
market flexibility is one of the most closely debated
public policy issues in India. This book provides a
theoretical framework to understand the subject, and
empirically examines to what extent India's 'jobless
growth' may be attributed to labour laws.
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There is a pervasive view that the country's low manufacturing
base and inability to generate jobs is primarily due
to rigid labour laws. Therefore, job creation is sought
to be boosted by reforming labour laws. However, the
book argues that if labour laws are made flexible,
then there are adverse consequences for workers: dismantled
job security weakens workers' bargaining power, incapacitates
trade union movement, skews class distribution of
output, dilutes workers' rights, and renders them
vulnerable. The book:
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Identifies
and critically examines the theory underlying the
labour market flexibility (LMF) argument
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Employs
innovative empirical methods to test the LMF argument
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Offers
an overview of the organised labour market in India
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Comprehensively
discusses the proposed/instituted labour law reforms
in the country
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Contextualises
the LMF argument in a macroeconomic setting
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Discusses
the political economy of labour law reforms in India.
This
book will interest scholars and researchers in economics,
development studies, and public policy as well as
economists, policymakers, and teachers of human resource
management.
Table
of Contents
Introduction
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Present
Status of Labour Laws in India and their proposed
amendments
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A
Critical Examination of Labour Market Flexibility
Debate in India
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Explanation
of Jobless Growth in India Manufacturing and trends
in Labour Conditions
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Identifying
the Theoretical Structure underlying Labour Market
Flexibility and its Critical Examination
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Some
Market Clearing Models on Labour Market Flexibility
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Effectiveness
of Labour Market Flexibility in face of Effective
Demand Constraint
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Labour
Market Flexibility in an Open Economy Context
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Concluding
Remarks
Bibliography
About the Author
Anamitra Roychowdhury teaches economics at Jawaharlal
Nehru University, New Delhi, India. Previously, he taught
at St. Stephen's College, University of Delhi. He completed
his doctoral studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University
and his areas of interest include development economics,
labour economics, Indian economy and macroeconomics.
He has published a number of research articles in many
renowned international and national journals including
International Labour Review, Agrarian South: Journal
of Political Economy, Economic and Political Weekly
and Social Scientist. His commentaries on contemporary
economic issues have appeared in Global Labour Column,
Mainstream and Macroscan.
Reviews
'This excellent study skillfully combines information
about labour laws with theoretical analysis. It deserves
to be read by all, researchers, politicians and practitioners
in the field who are not swayed by oversimplified rhetoric
of labour market reform.'
– Amit Bhaduri, Professor Emeritus,
Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi, India
'Dr Anamitra Roychowdhury's book Labour Law Reforms
in India: All in the Name of Jobs is a careful analysis
of one of the major economic questions in recent times.
After critically evaluating the voluminous literature,
the author builds formal analytical models to explain
the empirical findings. The book is a valuable addition
to the academic and policy discourse.'
– Nagaraj, Professor of Economics,
Indira Gandhi Institute of Development Research, Mumbai,
India
'This book alerts us that increasingly employers will
offer contract rather than permanent work. It examines
the theory behind labour market flexibility and offers
us a macroeconomic perspective that contradicts the
one which focuses solely on the labour market without
considering the repercussions at the aggregate economy
wide level. It is important reading for those concerned
about the future of livelihoods and how developing nations
should respond to that.'
– Errol D' Souza, Professor of Economics,
Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad, India
'That the inevitable result of flexibility in the labour
market—either by legislation or by stealth—has been
widening gaps in income and well-being is now accepted
by many economists with greater equanimity than before.
This book will have further sobering effect on the supporters
of the so-called labour market flexibility as it critically
looks at the theoretical arguments that provide justification
for flexibility. With a balanced combination of theoretical
arguments and empirical evidence the book eminently
accomplishes what it sets out to do – to show convincingly
that the measures advocated to make labour market more
flexible are unlikely to produce the results they are
supposed to produce.'
– Achin Chakraborty, Director, Institute
of Development Studies Kolkata, India
For more details: Click
here
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